For horror writers, there is probably no greater compliment on Earth – or indeed, in Hell – than earning a shout-out from Stephen King.
And the writers of scary new Netflix series Marianne have just been handed what is arguably the greatest endorsement they could have wished for from the man himself.
The King of Horror, as he is often described, has given the eerie show his seal of approval, describing it as having a ‘Stephen King vibe’. High praise indeed.
You can watch the creepy trailer for Marianne for yourself below:
Taking to Twitter, the 72-year-old master of suspense wrote:
If you’re one of those sickos–like me–who enjoys being scared, MARIANNE (Netflix) will do the job. There are glints of humor that give it a STRANGER THINGS vibe. It also has (I say it with all due modesty) a Stephen King vibe.
With Stranger Things having been heavily shaped by King’s oeuvre, it would appear Marianne shares much of the same spooky DNA.
Created and directed by Samuel Bodin – and co-written by Bodin and Quoc Dang Tran – Marianne is a French language film that follows a famous novelist as she realises her frightening books are actually coming true.
With troubled writers and nightmarish apparitions aplenty, it’s easy to see similarities between Marianne and many of King’s most notorious works.
At the time of writing, Marianne has 100 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes, having been well received by critics and viewers alike.
According to a summary on IMDb:
Famous author Emma Larsimon is haunted by the character Marianne. The witch that she created and the very entity that causes her sleepless nights.
Sick of the twisted world she has created, Emma decides to retire from writing, but a bizarre visit from a childhood friend causes her to visit the very place she swore she would never return to. Her hometown.
And it looks bloody terrifying. Those who have seen Marianne have given spine-tingling accounts of their viewing experiences, with one person stating, ‘The first episode scared me more than all of American Horror Story seasons combined.’
Another trembled:
I’m not one to be scared of horror movies but this is one of the few that shook me up pretty good. Better than anything Hollywood has done in the past few years.
Definitely a must-see for those of us who get a little bit of a kick from hiding under the duvet…
Marianne is now streaming on Netflix.
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.